When Nasir Sobhani picks up his clippers, he’s a man on a mission.
“The Streets Barber” can be found in Footscray’s Nicholson Mall each Monday, giving free haircuts and shaves to the homeless and those down on their luck.
With scissors, clippers or razor in hand, the transformation begins.
‘Nas’ finds the process of providing haircuts and shaves in the street as part of his Clean Cut Clean Start initiative makes people feel
better about how they look and is a way of opening a door onto their troubles and letting light in.
“It is an intimacy – they are trusting me to make them look and feel good and there is this level of communication that people share,” he said.
“They are used to being seen as the scum of the earth, but they open up to me and I open up to them – it is a two-way street.”
The 26-year-old Canadian came to Australia three years ago for his own clean start. After six or seven years abusing drugs and a lengthy stint in rehabilitation, he was thrown a lifeline when his brother insisted he join him in Melbourne.
Nas enrolled in a hairdressing program with Victoria University, spending every spare moment cutting hair for friends and anyone else willing to let him practise on them.
Follow the Clean Cut Clean Start initiative on Instagram @thestreetsbarb
